Finland took over the presidency of the European Union on Saturday 1 July.

Until the end of the year, when it hands over to Germany, it will be appearing in the news more than usual.

What better time to find out more about the country of 5.2 million in the EU's far north-east!

Take our quiz to brush up on your knowledge of Finnish geography, history, culture and trivia.

Question 1

Finland joined the EU at the same time as which one of these countries?

A: Austria

B: Spain

C: Denmark

Question 2

Finnish company Nokia makes one in three of the world’s mobile telephones. What is the origin of the word Nokia?

A: It is the Finnish for "telephone"

B: It is the name of a Finnish town

C: It is formed from the initials of the children of the company's founder

Question 3

The Finnish rock group Lordi set a number of records when it won the Eurovision song contest in 2006. Which of the following is false?

A: It was the first Finnish group to win

B: It was the first heavy metal group to win

C: It was the first winning group with a singer over the age of 30

Question 4

About 6% of Finland’s energy production comes from peat. Which of these European countries is even more dependent on it?

A: Denmark

B: Ireland

C: Malta

Question 5

As Italy and Finland battled for the right to host the European Food Standards Agency, the then Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi made disparaging comments about Finland. Which of the following statements was made by another European leader?

A: The Finns don't even know what prosciutto is

B: After Finland, (the UK) is the country with the worst food

C: There is absolutely no comparison between Parma ham and smoked reindeer

Question 6

What is meant by the term "Finlandisation"?

A: Afforestation of large areas of land with spruce or larch

B: A plan to populate empty Nordic territories with Finns

C: The influence of the Soviet Union on Finland during the Cold War

Question 7

Finnish is renowned for being tough to learn, for English-speakers anyway. Which of the following statements about the language is NOT true?

A: Finnish has no direct translation of the verb "to have"

B: Finnish makes no distinction between "he" and "she"

C: Finnish has many words for "a" and "the"

Question 8

Finland briefly had a King in 1918. From which country’s royal family was he taken?

A: Sweden

B: Germany

C: Portugal

Question 9

Finland is a Nordic country, but is not, strictly speaking, one of the Scandinavian group of countries. Which if the following groups is it also not a member of?